Liv Tyler once was the breakout star. A fresh face on Hollywood Boulevard. Magazines fawned over her.
“Liv Tyler is 19 years old and has a little time left as the most famous and lusted-after teenager on the planet. But that’s all right, her third decade looks as if it is going to work out just fine.” – Arena June 1997
“Beautiful? My God, beautiful is not the word. She’s absolutely gorgeous.” – Empire Magazine Septemeber 1996
That was the mid-90’s. And now?
“38 is a crazy number. It’s not fun when you see things start to change,” Liv Tyler, who turned 38 in July, told More magazine. “When you’re in your teens or twenties, there is an abundance of ingénue parts which are exciting to play. But at [my age], you’re usually the wife or the girlfriend, a sort of second-class citizen. There are more interesting roles for women when they get a bit older.”
Cue sad face. Getting old sucks for women in Hollywood. Anyone surprised? No. It’s always harsh when you encounter it though, as Tyler is probably experiencing right now. She can confide in fellow thirty-somethings like Maggie Gyllenhaal and Anne Hathaway.
Maggie Gyllenhaal: “I’m 37 and I was told recently I was too old to play the lover of a man who was 55. It was astonishing to me. It made me feel bad, and then it made me feel angry, and then it made me laugh.” – The Wrap
Anne Hathaway: When I was in my early twenties, parts would be written for women in their fifties and I would get them. And now I’m in my early thirties and I’m like, ‘Why did that 24 year old get that part?’ I was that 24 year old once, I can’t be upset about it, it’s the way things are. All I can do right now is think that thankfully you have built up perhaps a little bit of cachet and can tell stories that interest you and if people go to see them you’ll be allowed to make more. – Glamour UK
Still can’t believe Hollywood passes over Hathaway. She’s only 32, looks 25 and isn’t that bad of an actress. C’mon, 30 is the new 20!
Back to Tyler. She’s taking Hollywood ageism in stride. Motherhood has always held priority for her over acting. Her two sons, Milo, 10 and Sailor, 7-months old, get her attention first. But surely, deep down, Tyler probably wishes she was that 19-year old getting those roles again.
Let that be a lesson to Gigi Hadid, Kylie and Kendall Jenner, and all those young girl celebs running around out there. Your time will come sooner than you think. Then, one day, you’ll stare at Instagram and see your younger, evil twin stealing all your thunder.
